to commit crime
48
2.5
- phrasal verb
- /kəˈmɪt kraɪm/
:
cometer un delito
- I believe people who commit crime should be in jail, right.
- likely to commit crimes
- prone to commit crimes
- drug users commit crimes
And so you have people here that commit crimes that you can't deport.
- And so you have people here that commit crimes that you can't deport.
- There will still be people who will commit crimes like that, right?
- Donald Trump riled up all of his supporters to go commit crimes, to attempt an insurrection.
- And also, if Proud Boys aren't committing crime and they're also not a gang, yeah, pretty big deal.
- But the main thing I forgot to mention about him, he is like a typical villain, except he doesn't commit crime.
- You can choose not to commit crime, big tick.
- You know, I've seen individuals who have committed crimes in their sleep.
- And just, you know, please not commit crime.
- But also, you know, you're you commit crimes.
- All right, Sure, black people commit crimes against black people, but it's not a thing.
- They're taking your jobs, they're raping, they're committing crimes.
- Let them be like, like explorers, like, yeah, these people commit crimes.
Examples
-
Immigrants are less prone to commit crimes than their native-born counterparts.
Academic text (2009) -
It's an incentive to commit crime.
-
I think this gets into very, this gets into your picture of human nature and why someone would commit crime to begin with.
-
There will still be people who will commit crimes like that, right?
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We use it to make sure that our young people are safe, either not committing crime or not victims of crime.
-
There is no reason to think that the ability to commit crime should be treated any differently.
Academic text (2016) -
That's why people commit crimes.
-
Aren't you supposed to stop me from committing crimes?
-
Higher drug prices increase non-drug crime because many heavy users commit crimes to finance their habits.
Academic text (2003) -
People who commit crime often face serious consequences if caught.
Synonyms
∞
3.3
To do something illegal or wrong
85
8.4
To do a harmful or illegal act
10
5.4
To break the law
Antonyms
How Serious
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to do something illegal' is directly and transparently derived from combining 'commit' (to carry out/perpetrate) with 'crime' (an unlawful act); a B1 learner who knows both words can infer the MWE meaning. Although native usage often includes an article ('commit a crime') or uses other verbs in some languages, the core compositional semantics is clear and cross-linguistically common, so it is readily understandable from the parts.
Etymology
Commit crime may come from old legal language where commit meant 'to carry out' an action, so to commit a crime was literally the picture of carrying out a wrong act. That's why today commit crime means 'to do something illegal'.